Frequently Asked Questions

I have found a sick or injured bat. What should I do?

If you find a bat outside and are able to approach it or pick it up, it is
probably sick, injured or weak. To avoid it suffering any further distress gently pick it up
and put it in a secure box. The box should be lined with kitchen paper to give the bat a grip
and must have a tightly fitting lid or the bat will quickly escape. Make a few small air holes
in the lid. Soak some tissue in water and put this in a small container in the box. If you
have some cat food try giving the bat a little (just half a teaspoonful will be plenty). Leave
the box in a quiet, dark place until dusk. If the weather is dry and not too cold, take the
bat outside at dusk, warming it first in your hands until it starts to move about. Hold your
palm out flat at chest height at see if the bat flies away Note you must
always wear gloves when handling bats

If the bat is clearly injured when you find it (signs
of blood, damaged wing, etc.) or seems OK but does not fly away after following
the above instructions call the

Bat Conservation Trust
help line on

0845 1300 228

There is a bat flying around inside my house.
How do I get it out?

Bats can get into houses through small crevices, down the chimney, through open
doors and windows or they may be brought in and released by the cat. Mostly they will fly
about at night and hide in some secluded corner during daylight, only to appear again the
following night, perhaps in a different room. When flying they make high-pitched sounds
which we can't hear called echolocation, which tell them what obstacles are in their way.
So, if you have a large window in the room open it and the bat will likely soon find its way
out. Otherwise wait for it to settle (often in the folds of a curtain) approach it slowly,
pick it up gently using gloves and take it outside. If the bat 'disappears' it is best to wait
until it re-emerges. There is no easy way to find a bat a hidden bat unless you are prepared
to move all your furniture!

A bat inside a building is usually a one-off event. If you have repeated problems call
Bat Conservation Trust
help line on 0845 1300 228

There are bats living in my roof / under the eaves.
What should I do?

Best to leave them alone! Bats originally lived in natural crevices like tree
holes, but because we have destroyed many of their natural homes many have now adapted to live
in our houses, even modern ones. Bats usually live in buildings during summer (May-September)
going elsewhere to hibernate for the winter. They make use of existing crevices and do not
build nests, so they cause no damage to property. The worst problem you are likely to
encounter is a few droppings beneath their entry point. Bats are insect eaters and their
droppings comprise mostly bits of insect wings, so they don't smell or carry diseases
transmissible to humans. Many bats in houses live under the eaves, inside soffits or
between tiles and roofing felt, so never go inside the roof space. But if you have an
older house you may have brown long-eared bats hanging from the main beam. Bats usually return
to the same place year after year.

Because bats have declined dramatically in recent years all bats and their roosts are protected
by law at all times. It is illegal to do anything which may harm them or stop them entering or
leaving their roost site, even if they are apparently absent at the time, without first
obtaining advice from English Nature. The sort of thing which might require advice is
replacing, repairing or repainting fascias, soffits and bargeboards; re-roofing the property;
having the timbers treated for woodworm or dry rot; or converting the loft into a room.

Someone wants to redevelop some property nearby, but I see
bats flying there. Can they go ahead?

Bats and their roosting places are protected by law, but bats may fly several
miles at night so there are few places where you are unlikely to see at least one if you look.
The key thing is do the bats roost in the buildings or trees to be affected? If you see bats
leaving at dusk, often from a small hole high up on a building, then it is very likely they
roost there. So, first of all, go out on a few evenings and try to spot whether the bats are
going out to feed elsewhere, or coming to the site to feed, from elsewhere. Getting a
conclusive answer is not always easy, even for an expert, so if there is any doubt, it is best
to assume that they might live there.

If you have good reason to suspect that bats do live at the site, tell the Planning Dept of
the local council. Bats are a material consideration when deciding whether to grant planning
permission, but if you don't say anything it is possible that the applicant or council might not
know anything about them. Usually the council will then ask the applicant to have a survey
carried out by an expert. Even if there are bats present, that is only occasionally sufficient
on its own to stop a development. However, the developer will have a legal duty to carry out
agreed measures to try to ensure that bats continue to live at the site after the development
has taken place and will need a licence from the Department for Environment, Food & Rural
Affairs (DEFRA) in addition to valid planning permission.

Will bats harm me or my family?

No. Bats are small, insect-eating mammals that are likely to be more afraid of
you, than you are of them. Most species which live in houses weigh only a few grammes and many
adult bats would fit in a matchbox with their wings closed. It is always wise to avoid letting
any animal try to bite you, but the teeth of many of our bats are too small to pierce the skin.
Bats have excellent navigation skills thanks to their echolocation system, so they won't get
caught in your hair. There are no vampire bats in Britain!

If I have a roost in my house, will I be overrun with bats
in a few years?

Very unlikely. Although the majority of obvious roosts in houses consist largely of female
bats which gather together to give birth, they breed at a very slow rate so big increases in
numbers are very rare. A bat is usually several years old before it breeds for the first time
and even then it may not breed every year. When it does breed, it only gives birth to one
youngster a year. Because bats feed only on insects, they have to hibernate in the winter,
first putting on sufficient fat to see them through the cold months. This can be quite a
challenge for a young bat, so many die in their first winter.

So, although most of the adult females and their female babies will return the next year
to your house, the overall total number of bats is likely to be roughly the same. That is
not to say that you won't notice some fluctuation in numbers. For example, most villages or
areas of a town will probably have a colony of 200 - 300 Pipistrelle bats. They will know a
variety of roosting sites, some suitable only in certain weather conditions, which they will
use. If the weather changes suddenly, bats from another roost might arrive or all your bats
might leave and go elsewhere. And if they lose a favoured roost, then they have to look
elsewhere so you might gain bats from that roost.

Further information
If you need further information or advice about bats in Yorkshire please call the
Bat Conservation Trust
help line on 0845
1300 228. If necessary a local 'bat worker' will be asked to
call on you to help solve your problem. There is no charge for this service.

Bat surveys required in connection with planning applications for developments or the
preparation of DEFRA licence applications is not covered by this service. These services can
be obtained on a fee basis from suitably qualified ecological consultants.